Guyana And The Commonwealth Of Nations
Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north, Brazil to the south and southwest, Venezuela to the west, and Suriname to the east. With , Guyana is the third-smallest sovereign state by area in mainland South America after Uruguay and Suriname, and is the second-least populous sovereign state in South America after Suriname; it is also one of the least densely populated countries on Earth. It has a wide variety of natural habitats and very high biodiversity. The region known as "the Guianas" consists of the large shield landmass north of the Amazon River and east of the Orinoco River known as the "land of many waters". Nine indigenous tribes reside in Guyana: the Wai Wai, Macushi, Patamona, Lokono, Kalina, Wapishana, Pemon, Akawaio and Warao. Histo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dear Land Of Guyana, Of Rivers And Plains
"Dear Land of Guyana, of Rivers and Plains" is the national anthem of Guyana. Robert Cyril Gladstone Potter composed the music, while the lyrics were authored by Archibald Leonard Luker. Two separate contests were held to determine the words and the tune, respectively. It was adopted as the national anthem in 1966, when the country gained independence from the United Kingdom. History The British amalgamated the formerly Dutch colonies of Berbice, Demerara and Essequibo in 1814 into a single colony – British Guiana – and ruled over it until 1966. During the run up to independence in the early 1960s, several attempts were made by government committees to select the text to the new national anthem, but they all resulted in an impasse. Finally, in 1965, a fresh contest was held, and a new committee was formed, composed of individuals who possessed "broad literary and poetic backgrounds". The criteria they formulated for the anthem was that it should be august, inspire a love ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Portuguese Language
Portuguese ( or, in full, ) is a western Romance language of the Indo-European language family, originating in the Iberian Peninsula of Europe. It is an official language of Portugal, Brazil, Cape Verde, Angola, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau and São Tomé and Príncipe, while having co-official language status in East Timor, Equatorial Guinea, and Macau. A Portuguese-speaking person or nation is referred to as " Lusophone" (). As the result of expansion during colonial times, a cultural presence of Portuguese speakers is also found around the world. Portuguese is part of the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several dialects of Vulgar Latin in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia and the County of Portugal, and has kept some Celtic phonology in its lexicon. With approximately 250 million native speakers and 24 million L2 (second language) speakers, Portuguese has approximately 274 million total speakers. It is usually listed as the sixth-most spoken language, the third-most sp ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Islam In Guyana
Islam in Guyana is the third largest religion in the country after Christianity and Hinduism, respectively. According to the 2002 census, 7.3% of the country is Muslim. However, a Pew Research survey from 2010 estimates that 6.4% of the country is Muslim. Islam was first introduced to Guyana via slaves from West Africa, but was suppressed on plantations until Muslims of India, Pakistan and Afghanistan were brought to the country as indentured labor. The Islamic holidays of Eid al-Adha, Eid al-Fitr and Mawlid (the birthday of Muhammad) are nationally recognized in Guyana. History As with most South American countries, Islam spread to Guyana through the transatlantic slave trade. Mandingo and Fulani Muslims were brought from West Africa to work as slaves in Guyana's sugar plantations. However, the oppressive conditions of slavery in the colony led the practice of Islam to essentially disappear until 1838 when 240,000 South Asians were brought from modern-day India, Pakistan and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Hinduism In Guyana
Hinduism is the religion of approximately 23.3% of the population of Guyana in 2020. Guyana has the highest percentage of Hindus in the Western Hemisphere. History After the 1833 Slavery Abolition Act in the British Empire, the need for labour led to the recruitment of Indians in Guyana and other British West Indian territories. Upon arrival, the new workers had to adapt to the extreme tropical conditions, along with their new contracts and working conditions. Between 1835 and 1918, 341,600 indentured laborers were imported into British Guyana from India. From 1852, Christian missionaries attempted to convert East Indians during the indenture period, but this met with little success. When Christian missionaries started proselytizing, Brahmins started administering spiritual rites to all Hindus regardless of caste. This led to the breakdown of the caste system there. In the late 1940s, reform movements caught the attention of many Guyanese Hindus. In 1910, Arya Samaj arrive ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global population. Its adherents, known as Christians, are estimated to make up a majority of the population in 157 countries and territories, and believe that Jesus is the Son of God, whose coming as the messiah was prophesied in the Hebrew Bible (called the Old Testament in Christianity) and chronicled in the New Testament. Christianity began as a Second Temple Judaic sect in the 1st century Hellenistic Judaism in the Roman province of Judea. Jesus' apostles and their followers spread around the Levant, Europe, Anatolia, Mesopotamia, the South Caucasus, Ancient Carthage, Egypt, and Ethiopia, despite significant initial persecution. It soon attracted gentile God-fearers, which led to a departure from Jewish customs, and, a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Chinese Guyanese
The first numbers of Chinese arrived in British Guiana in 1853, forming an important minority of the indentured workforce. After their indenture, many who stayed on in Guyana came to be known as successful retailers, with considerable integration with the local culture. The most notable person of Chinese ancestry, Arthur Chung, was independent Guyana's first President from 1970 to 1980, and the first Chinese head of state of a non-Asian country. History Fourteen thousand Chinese arrived in British Guiana between 1853 and 1879 on 39 vessels bound from Hong Kong by the British Raj officials to fill the labor shortage on the sugar plantations engendered by the abolition of slavery. Smaller numbers arrived in other British colonies such as Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago and Suriname. The Chinese achieved considerable success in the colony, a number of them having been Christians in China before the emigration. Some, particularly in the early years were "the offscourings of Canton--gaol-b ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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White Caribbeans
White Caribbean or European Caribbean is the term for people who are born in the Caribbean whose ancestors are from Europe or people who emigrated to the Caribbean from Europe and had acquired citizenship in their respective Caribbean countries. White Caribbeans include: * Béké * White Bahamians * White Barbadians * White Bermudians * White Dominicans (Dominica) * White Dominicans (Dominican Republic) * White Guyanese **Portuguese Guyanese * White Haitians ** French Haitians ** German Haitians ** Italian Haitians ** Polish Haitians * White Jamaicans ** German Jamaicans ** Irish Jamaicans ** Scottish Jamaicans ** Spanish Jamaicans * White Kittitians and Nevisians * White Puerto Ricans * White Surinamese ** Dutch Surinamese ** Portuguese Surinamese * White Trinidadians and Tobagonians ** Portuguese Trinidadians and Tobagonians History The first Europeans to arrive in the Caribbean were Spaniards who discovered Hispaniola. Many white people in the Caribbean owned Afro-Ca ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Indigenous Peoples In Guyana
Indigenous peoples in Guyana, Native Guyanese, or Amerindian Guyanese are Guyanese people who are of indigenous ancestry. They comprise approximately 9.16% of Guyana's population. Amerindians are credited with the invention of the canoe, as well as Cassava-based dishes and Guyanese pepperpot, the national dish of Guyana. Amerindian languages have also been incorporated in the lexicon of Guyanese Creole. Customs and languages vary across the nations of Amerindians. Each group has a distinct language, although there is understanding between speakers of Pemon, Kapóng, and Macushi. According to a survey conducted by the Inter-American Development Bank, only 20% of households were fluent in their own language, and higher fluency was related to longer distance from the capital. Caribs have been historically viewed as a warrior people, and while there is inter-tribal rivalry, much of what remains today was instigated during European colonization. A lack of writing system at the time o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Multiracial People
Mixed race people are people of more than one race or ethnicity. A variety of terms have been used both historically and presently for mixed race people in a variety of contexts, including ''multiethnic'', ''polyethnic'', occasionally ''bi-ethnic'', '' Métis'', '' Muwallad'', ''Colored'', ''Dougla'', ''half-caste'', '' ʻafakasi'', ''mestizo'', ''Melungeon'', ''quadroon'', ''octoroon'', '' sambo/zambo'', ''Eurasian'', ''hapa'', ''hāfu'', ''Garifuna'', ''pardo'' and ''Guran''. A number of these terms are now considered offensive, in addition to those that were initially coined for pejorative use. Individuals of mixed-race backgrounds make up a significant portion of the population in many parts of the world. In North America, studies have found that the mixed race population is continuing to grow. In many countries of Latin America, mestizos make up the majority of the population and in some others also mulattoes. In the Caribbean, mixed race people officially make up the majo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Afro-Guyanese People
Afro-Guyanese are generally descended from the enslaved people brought to Guyana from the coast of West Africa to work on sugar plantations during the era of the Atlantic slave trade. Coming from a wide array of backgrounds and enduring conditions that severely constrained their ability to preserve their respective cultural traditions contributed to the adoption of Christianity and the values of British colonists. History Slavery The Dutch West India Company turned to the importation of African slaves, who rapidly became a key element in the colonial economy.. By the 1660s, the slave population numbered about 2,500; the number of indigenous people was estimated at 50,000, most of whom had retreated into the vast hinterland. Although African slaves were considered an essential element of the colonial economy, their working conditions were brutal. The mortality rate was high, and the dismal conditions led to more than half a dozen slave rebellions. The most famous slave uprisin ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Indo-Guyanese
Indo-Guyanese or Indian-Guyanese, are people of Indian origin who are Guyanese nationals tracing their ancestry to India and the wider subcontinent. They are the descendants of indentured servants and settlers who migrated from India beginning in 1838 during the time of the British Raj. Most of the Indian settlers who arrived to then British Guiana were from North India, specifically Bihar and the Northern Awadh region of the Hindi Belt. However a significant minority came from South India through the port of Madras. Among the immigrants, there were also labourers from other parts of South Asia. The vast majority of Indians came as contract labourers during the 19th century, spurred on by political upheaval, the ramifications of the Mutiny of 1857 and famine. Others arrived as merchants, landowners and farmers pushed out by many of the same factors. Indo-Guyanese are the largest ethnic group in Guyana identified by the official census, about 40% of the population in 2012. T ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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French Language
French ( or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European family. It descended from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire, as did all Romance languages. French evolved from Gallo-Romance, the Latin spoken in Gaul, and more specifically in Northern Gaul. Its closest relatives are the other langues d'oïl—languages historically spoken in northern France and in southern Belgium, which French ( Francien) largely supplanted. French was also influenced by native Celtic languages of Northern Roman Gaul like Gallia Belgica and by the ( Germanic) Frankish language of the post-Roman Frankish invaders. Today, owing to France's past overseas expansion, there are numerous French-based creole languages, most notably Haitian Creole. A French-speaking person or nation may be referred to as Francophone in both English and French. French is an official language in 29 countries across multiple continents, most of which are members of the ''Organisation internationale de la Francophonie'' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |